Prospect Info: Lias Andersson

[Vinny DeAngelo]

i think people here are missing the point on andersson.

sure its better to be in the SEL and play alot of minutes etc. the AHL isnt an option really. its here or sweden.

but what happens if this kid is one of the best 12 forwards in camp? i mean what happens if he's the real deal and doesnt look out of place and in fact, looks ready. then what ?

we haven't drafted a kid like this in a long time. he's a top prospect who was drafted as a perhaps right now kid. he's talented, mature and has the game to play now (maybe). its not like we have a surplus of NHL centers. were down 2 from last years team. the 1 and the 4. theres a need.

if theres a need, and a spot and this kid is as talented as it seems, whats wrong with thinking he can stay here if he is one of the top 12 forwards ?

seems everyone here is conditioned to believe he can play now or must go back to sweden.

Well i think the conditions are better in Frolunda than Hartford...

But i think he has to prove in camp hes one of the top 9 forwards..
Having him play on the fourth line or on the wing in minimal minutes wont be as good for his development IMO

 

[offdacrossbar]

Well i think the conditions are better in Frolunda than Hartford...

But i think he has to prove in camp hes one of the top 9 forwards..
Having him play on the fourth line or on the wing in minimal minutes wont be as good for his development IMO

as a teenager, if he can play the 4C and get a regular shift- not uncommon on an AV team where he likes to roll 4 lines, practice with the team, travel with the team and be around the guys, how is that not a great development program for a young player ?

i dont like him on the wing. leave him in the middle where we need a 4C.

agree frolunda is better than hartford by alot. hartford to me, isnt an option.

im still thinking this kids got shot to play meaningful minutes. as long as he's one of the top 4 pivots in camp.

 

[Mac n Gs]

as a teenager, if he can play the 4C and get a regular shift- not uncommon on an AV team where he likes to roll 4 lines, practice with the team, travel with the team and be around the guys, how is that not a great development program for a young player ?

i dont like him on the wing. leave him in the middle where we need a 4C.

agree frolunda is better than hartford by alot. hartford to me, isnt an option.

im still thinking this kids got shot to play meaningful minutes. as long as he's one of the top 4 pivots in camp.

Because we know how AV distributes ice time and usually for a younger player, playing more minutes helps development more often than not. If he earns it, then so be it. Otherwise I don't mind him cooking for a year in Sweden

 

[GeorgeKaplan]

as a teenager, if he can play the 4C and get a regular shift- not uncommon on an AV team where he likes to roll 4 lines, practice with the team, travel with the team and be around the guys, how is that not a great development program for a young player ?

i dont like him on the wing. leave him in the middle where we need a 4C.

agree frolunda is better than hartford by alot. hartford to me, isnt an option.

im still thinking this kids got shot to play meaningful minutes. as long as he's one of the top 4 pivots in camp.

I think people want him to focus on developing offense instead of focusing on not making mistakes in the NHL

 

[Thordic]

I think people want him to focus on developing offense instead of focusing on not making mistakes in the NHL

Exactly. Let's not Malhotra the kid (yes I'm turning that into a verb).

 

[silverfish]

Exactly. Let's not Malhotra the kid (yes I'm turning that into a verb).

Malhotra was never really an 'offensive dynamo' to begin with. 51 pts in 57 games in the year he was drafted. Point being I'm not entirely certain the Rangers 'stunted' Malhotra's offensive growth by putting him right in the NHL. It's hard to say if it was ever really there to begin with.

 

[nyr2k2]

Yeah Manny just wasn't that good offensively. I don't think the Rangers ruined him. I don't think they handled him well, but I don't think they stunted his development. Slowed, maybe, but nothing permanent. The player he became is the player he would have become regardless. IMO.

 

[silverfish]

Yeah Manny just wasn't that good offensively. I don't think the Rangers ruined him. I don't think they handled him well, but I don't think they stunted his development. Slowed, maybe, but nothing permanent. The player he became is the player he would have become regardless. IMO.

Yep, agreed. Either way, offense or no offense, 991 NHL games out of the 7OA pick is a hell of a coup anyway you slice it. Only 7 players in NHL history drafted 7OA have played more games than Malhotra. Doan, Luke Richardson, Sydor, Gelinas, Arnott, Russ Courtnall, Bernie Federko.

 

[DudMan28]

Yeah Manny just wasn't that good offensively. I don't think the Rangers ruined him. I don't think they handled him well, but I don't think they stunted his development. Slowed, maybe, but nothing permanent. The player he became is the player he would have become regardless. IMO.

I tend to wonder about this with most players. Sometimes I think the term "ruined a prospect" gets thrown around a bit too casually. I think it comes down to you either have it or you dont. Can coaching and an ideal situation positively impact you as a player? Sure. But I don't think situational handling can change a players end game all that much.

 

[Thordic]

I didn't mean they ruined him - but they certainly sidelined any potential development of his offensive game.

I agree it's debateable, but I know there are more than a few Rangers fans besides myself who believe that Malhotra could been a "better" player if he hadn't been rushed into the NHL. He had a great career, but the difference between .3PPG (his career average) and .4-.5 PPG would have had a big impact. I don't think anyone expects he would have been an offensive dynamo but more of a middle-six guy was possible.

We'll never know.

 

[DudMan28]

I didn't mean they ruined him - but they certainly sidelined any potential development of his offensive game.

I agree it's debateable, but I know there are more than a few Rangers fans besides myself who believe that Malhotra could been a "better" player if he hadn't been rushed into the NHL. He had a great career, but the difference between .3PPG (his career average) and .4-.5 PPG would have had a big impact. I don't think anyone expects he would have been an offensive dynamo but more of a middle-six guy was possible.

We'll never know.

The thing is, what could they have done differently to bring out his offensive game?

Does practice with NHL players & 10 mins TOI outweigh practice with AHL players and 15 mins TOI a night?

It's a similar question with Andersson. Do NHL practices and less TOI outweigh SHL practices and more TOI. Also add the acclimation to NA rinks he would get here.

 

[Levitate]

Wasn't Malhotra still juniors eligible? I think the idea would have been to send him back there rather than put him in the NHL

 

[Fitzy]

Yep, agreed. Either way, offense or no offense, 991 NHL games out of the 7OA pick is a hell of a coup anyway you slice it. Only 7 players in NHL history drafted 7OA have played more games than Malhotra. Doan, Luke Richardson, Sydor, Gelinas, Arnott, Russ Courtnall, Bernie Federko.

I think the role matters as well.

Dom Moore has 850 NHL games with more to go, but I wouldn't be content with that kind of player at #7.


If Andersson is a consistent 40-50 point middle 6 center who is great defensively, that's good. But I wont be thrilled If he is more of a 25-35 point guy like Malhotra.

 

[Pavel Buchnevich]

Stop with Malhotra. Different circumstances.

 

[Ola]

There's also practice... practicing with NHLers >>>>> A or Sweden.

Yeah but I also think there is a much better balance between games and practice in the SHL. You don't play 82 games because it's best for your development, you play 82 games plus POs because that's how many games you can squeeze in between October and June. The CBAs training restrictions are also pretty harsh.

In the SHL the players are worked much harder and with 50 instead of 80 games you get more time to recover. Staying in SHL also lets him focus more on developing his game, instead of doing that while also learning everything that is new in the NHL.

I've heard numerous former NHLers advice players to stay a year or two extra in Europe. I've never heard anyone say the opposite.

OTOH, you have a guy like Patrice Bergeron. He was certainly not hurt from going to the NHL instantly. But to play in the NHL I think you gotta be pretty involved offensively. Not just a smaller role.

 

[nyr2k2]

Who was it that said "It's better to bring a player over a year too late than a year too early"? Its a variation of the Branch Rickey quote. I think there's a lot to that.

 

[pld459666]

The worst thing that we did with Manny was not trading him.

Neil Smith had Colorado offering three of the four 1st rounders they had in that draft and Smith got greedy and wanted all four.

Dumbass

 

[Thirty One]

Who was it that said "It's better to bring a player over a year too late than a year too early"? I think there's a lot to that.

Branch Rickey said that about trading a player away, so whoever said this version owes him royalties.

 

[silverfish]

I think the role matters as well.

Dom Moore has 850 NHL games with more to go, but I wouldn't be content with that kind of player at #7.


If Andersson is a consistent 40-50 point middle 6 center who is great defensively, that's good. But I wont be thrilled If he is more of a 25-35 point guy like Malhotra.

Sure, there's a debate about quality/quantity in here. But if LA ends up playing 991 NHL games, then it's hard to look back on the pick and say it was a bad one.

Although, I guess this is a bit of an 'appeal to authority' seeing as how chances are it'd require quite a few NHL coaches to play him in that many games....

 

[HatTrick Swayze]

I am a big believer that confidence and situation matter so much with prospects, and that nothing tops the intensity of game experience.

Especially if you want a kid to work on making plays offensively. Having confidence at a lower level of play makes that easier, and then repetition builds habit. Vs a limited role a level up where the only way you stay in the lineup is minimizing mistakes.

 

[TheTakedown]

Branch Rickey said that about trading a player away, so whoever said this version owes him royalties.

That would be rangerboy

 

[McRanger]

Yeah Manny just wasn't that good offensively. I don't think the Rangers ruined him. I don't think they handled him well, but I don't think they stunted his development. Slowed, maybe, but nothing permanent. The player he became is the player he would have become regardless. IMO.

Agreed. Never really saw any offensive potential outside of a dozen memorial cup games before he was drafted.

 

[Mikos87]

Yeah but I also think there is a much better balance between games and practice in the SHL. You don't play 82 games because it's best for your development, you play 82 games plus POs because that's how many games you can squeeze in between October and June. The CBAs training restrictions are also pretty harsh.

In the SHL the players are worked much harder and with 50 instead of 80 games you get more time to recover. Staying in SHL also lets him focus more on developing his game, instead of doing that while also learning everything that is new in the NHL.

I've heard numerous former NHLers advice players to stay a year or two extra in Europe. I've never heard anyone say the opposite.

OTOH, you have a guy like Patrice Bergeron. He was certainly not hurt from going to the NHL instantly. But to play in the NHL I think you gotta be pretty involved offensively. Not just a smaller role.

I think it depends in this situation, because of a lack of depth and need with the Rangers down the middle.

If any of Nieves, Tambo, & Fogarty showed signs of being an NHL role player, then I'd say keep him in Europe.

The Rangers 13th forward option can't be one of those guys, it will have to be an add-on or a waiver pick-up down the line. They also need to address the 4th line center role.

I'd like to see them add a skater, I'd even welcome Matt Cullen back (he was outstanding the last two years... but all those miles at 41... you don't know when it will give).

I still think they will play it by ear until camp. This coaching staff is adverse to inexperience on the blueline until proven otherwise... so Staal-Holden may be the third pair going into camp.

 

[Chaels Arms]

I would not mind seeing Andersson in the NHL if he earns the 3C spot. Given the look of the roster right now, that's not much of a stretch.

Assume Zibanejad has the 1C slot locked down. That's about 18-19 minutes per game. Hayes is going to be given a long look at the 2C slot and every possible opportunity to lock it down which going off AV's usage last season means about 17-18 minutes per game.

After that it's a toss up. You've got the option of slotting Miller in at 3C or an open competition between Desharnais, Nieves and Andersson. The 3C role under AV should be good for about 16 minutes per game from AV's usage of Hayes last season. That's a solid role with plenty of room for growth for a young player.

I do not think it is out of the realm of possibility that Andersson is a better all around player than Desharnais or Nieves at the moment. I know people will think I'm jumping the gun here but that's more of an indictment of DD and Nieves than me thinking Andersson is the savior.

Really, the main decision for the coaching staff is going to be whether or not they want to move Miller to C or keep him as a wing in the top-six. Zuccarello, Nash, Kreider, Miller on the wings. Dropping Miller to 3C avoids having one of Andersson, DD or Nieves in that role but creates a hole in the top six. I don't think Vesey or Buch are ready for the top six.

Lindberg was an exceptional player for a 4th line C and received about 10-11 minutes per. That's not the situation Andersson should be in. It has nothing to do with AV trying to turn young forwards into Brian Boyle. It's about minutes. If the team decides Miller needs to be on the wing, that opens the door for Andersson. If not, it's back to Europe for him hopefully.

 

[Amazing Kreiderman]

Another advantage of playing in the SHL is the possibility to play in the Euro Hockey Tour, with his national team. That's great development as well. All in all, a year with Frolunda offers more than just SHL games.